Milky oil in drive after oil change

[Lakemac2]

I have a VP dp-sm duo prop on a 2004 Larson cabrio260. Last weekend I decided to do an oil change as it had been a while. Old oil was dark you could even say black and there wasn't a lot of it, maybe 1.5 litres,(2.4 litres being the capacity of the drive) Changed oil and allowed oil to settle before taking for a test run, all seemed ok and then after accelerating to about 3000 rpm drive started making a "dry bearing" type of sound. Pulled it back to idle and put the boat away ( dry storage). When I changed the oil I also noticed 2 loose bolts in the shift housing. I removed the shift housing and the shift dog fell out before I could take note of which way round it was ( as per the workshop manual). Tapped out the loose bolt holes and replaced with larger bolts and refitted housing with gasket seal and "guessed" which way round the shift dog went back.
SO, thinking the shift dog was in wrong way round, causing the dry bearing sound, I cracked open the shift housing today only to find milky oil!! Any clues as to where to look and what may have caused water to get in?
Thanks in advance.
Lakemac2
P.SI have posted before to these forums, username, lakemac. but no longer have access to the email used to sign in/up ( old work email address)

 

[alldodge]

Unable to help but hope with my posting maybe a VP guy will assist.

Hey Scott Danforth can you advise?

 

[Scott Danforth]

Welcome aboard. the SM drives are a bit newer than I know, as I have been playing with the older AQ series however maybe muc can come along

in the mean time, remove all the oil, and perform a pressure test. that should point out where the water is coming in from. typical culprits are input shaft seal due to torn bellows, shift shaft seal, or output shaft seals.

 

[jerryjerry05]

If the bolts "fell" out then the water probably got in there.
Use the search function to find or make a pressure tester.

 

[bruceb58]

Have you removed the drive yet? If not, you should to see if there is any oil inside the drive bellows. The fact that the oil you pulled out wasn't milky suggests that it didn't come out the shift shaft but I bet that shaft is leaking now. My guess you have two leaks.

I would be really worried about damage caused by running .9L low. I check my drive oil level before every outing. You should be doing that too assuming you don't leave yours in the water.

 

[Lakemac2]

Thanks for all your replies, to update I pulled the drive off and discovered that the u joint bellows had a small hole at the 6 o'clock position where it was hard to see and as a result the gimbal bearing was corroded badly, hopping this was the cause of the dry bearing noise. Whilst the drive was off I fitted a genuine Volvo seal replacement kit , replacing all possible leaking seals,and of course a new gimbal bearing, and bellows. Now I have a new problem, I tried to refit the drive today with no luck, I can only get it to the point where the mounting stud almost go through the drive but no further. Could someone tell me if the bearing housing of the output shaft actually fits inside the lip of the bellows? That's where it seems to stop. The bellows supplied are a new design for longer service life,new part number and all. Or maybe the splines are just not lining up? Does anyone have any ideas as to how I can line up the splines easily?

 

[dypcdiver]

To line up the splines just put the drive in gear and twist the propshaft you should hear it and feel it when they engage.

 

[PiratePast40]

You didn't mention it, so I'll throw this out there. You're doing yourself a disservice if you don't perform pressure and vacuum tests on the drive before putting it back on.

 

[Lakemac2]

So I tried fitting the drive again today with no luck, again the drive goes on until the studs are just entering the holes in the drive and it will go no further. The spline seem to be lined up, spun the prop in gear as suggested and could feel them engage, but it will go no further. Last time I replaced the gimbal bearing and refitted the drive it fell on, no effort. The only difference this time is the bellows are the "new improved" type. Does anyone have any advise as to what I am doing wrong?
PS, what is the easiest way to upload photos with a post.
Cheers all.

 

[Fishhead-1]

You have an alignment problem, the bearing needs be aligned with the coupler. It's been talked about here before. Need to purchase or make a alignment tool.

 

[dypcdiver]

I Agree with Fishhead-1. the inner part has to be aligned with the coupler mounted on the flywheel. BTW the alignment bar is the same for Merc & VP you might be able to borrow or hire one, However as you should be checking this alignment every year buying one from ebay won't break the bank.

 

[BRICH1260]

You can get an alignment tool from Ebay for a reasonable price compared to OEM. Check alignment for restrictions and adjust your motor accordingly. Make sure your gimbal is if flush and square. The alignment tool comes with a gimbal seating ring which will help make sure that it is installed properly . Once the alignment is confirmed and gimbal seated properly the shaft should slide in enough to get the six retaining nuts started. You may have to slightly rotate the prop shaft while in gear to properly align the splines to the hub. Make sure to grease the "nose" of the outdrive well where it fits into the rear of the bellows. You may also have to lift up on the outdrive to get the nose over the lip of the bellows.

Did you replace the seals yourself? I ask because I have to do mine soon and didn't know how much of a diy job that is.

 

[Lakemac2]

Thanks everyone for your replies, I have ordered an alignment tool from Volvo parts dealer as there was none available on EBay ( I'm in Australia), slightly dearer than those available from US EBay but it will arrive today, where most from the US take up to 3 weeks to ship.
Yes Brich1260, I did replace the seals myself, though I have had some experience with seals and gearboxes. I am an electrician and have been overhauling motors and gearboxes for a living for the past 16 years.
Seals can be easy if you follow some simple rules,
Be very careful to not damage the sealing surface when removing the old seal.
Take particular note of which way round the seal is i.e seal spring in or out.
Double check the new seal is the same as the one you removed.
Lubricate the new seal liberally with "clean" oil.
And most importantly, find a drift/punch or piece of pipe that fits to the outside (steel) edge of the seal then there is less chance of seal damage when tapping it into place.
Volvo has a seal kit with everything you need to replace, cost me about $105 Australian.
And then perform a pressure test,as I did, for those that asked before.
Cheers.